Extended Ending for Spellbound
by Scioneeris
Summary: An extended ending for spellbound, after Raven has defeated Malchior and finished playing Stankball. It seems Robin has something to say to her. RobinxRaven Oneshot.


"I'm glad you're feeling better." Robin stood at the far end of the hall, watching her as her hand hovered just above the door. "I was worried."

The hand curled slowly into a fist and Raven managed to keep her head down, allowing the short wisps of hair to hide what it could of her face. "Thanks, Robin. I'm fine now. Goodnight."

"Raven."

His voice was softer, deliberate and much closer.

Her head snapped up with a gasp as she turned to the side to feel his presence closer than before. His speed was definitely improving, for he hand one hand on hers and another holding the door open. Yes, definitely improving, she'd have to make better calculations next time.

"Robin?"

"Beast Boy said it before I did. I wanted to be the one to apologize."

"For what?" She tried to pull her hand free of his, but the grip seemed to tighten, a development that forced her to look at his masked eyes. "There's nothing to apologize for. It was my own-"

"I'm sorry he broke your heart."

A painful breath caught in her chest and she pushed away the feelings that bubbled to the surface. This wasn't quite right. It wasn't quite wrong. "It's fine. Let me go!" She pulled again, harder this time.

"You're not as alone as you think, Raven!" He pulled back, causing her to tumble into his open arms. Warm, strong arms that clasped securely behind her, holding her close to him. "Why did you do that?"

"I-I-"

"You could have come to me." One hand fell away from her waist as Robin reached up to touch her cheek and then his mask. He must have heard her gasp, because he didn't remove the mask, instead, he held up something else for her own inspection.

A single tear glistened on his finger, the only thing between their faces.

Raven swallowed the hiccup, swallowed the scream and then swallowed the tears threatening to follow up. There wasn't anything she could say to that. He was speaking to her in a language she could understand with a method she couldn't ignore.

"You could have, but you didn't. Am I that weak? Am I such a stranger that you cannot even trust me with this? I've trusted you with my life, with my secrets and even…my heart." His head tilted forward to rest on her shoulder. "Raven…"

"Robin, I-!"

"Don't ever do something like that again." He pulled away, holding her firmly by the shoulders. "Do not ever do something like that again! Don't try to pull the darkness to you as I'm trying to pull you into the light. Don't throw away who you are! You think this is a battle to fight on your own, but it's not! It's hard. It will be hard. It will be long. It will be lonely, but I won't let you throw yourself away like this-"

"Robin-!"

"Shh!" He gave her a little shake. "What if you had died, Raven? With that much darkness, that much black magic? I know you're strong. You're stronger than all of us, sometimes, I don't understand how you can always keep going, but sometimes, if you don't stop, you'll lose yourself. Friends don't die to save each other. They live, so that they can save each other. Remember that." He gave her another shake and then his arms fell back to his sides.

She stared at him for very long time. The expression on his face, though half-hidden by the mask, was an expression of pain, sorrow and something lighter. The hiccup came to the surface as she realized that he knew what had happened. He actually understood what had just happened.

It wasn't about Beast Boy calling her creepy. It wasn't about Malchior betraying their brief, fragile friendship. It wasn't even about the emptiness of her own room.

It was the boy standing before her, with his heart in his hands, offering it to her, one more time. The yellow cape seemed to flare out, just a bit brighter behind him as he turned, about to leave. He'd offered her another chance and it was slipping away as quickly as it had come.

She tried to make her mouth move and her heart to speak what she hadn't dared to voice aloud for so long.

"Robin, wait-!"

His shoulders rose, but he didn't turn back. "What?"

"I…I can't…I, thank you."

"You're welcome." He continued down the hall.

The last strand of her perfected little world seemed to slice through the remains of her sanity. Raven found herself moving forward, until she caught hold of his arm and pulled him to a stop. Before Robin could say anything else, she hugged him as tight as she could. "Thank you." She repeated, willing the words to carry the feelings she didn't have the courage to voice. "Thank you, Robin."

His head turned slightly to the side and he leaned in to brush his lips against her cheek. "You're welcome, Raven." He cleared his throat, suddenly leaning away.

Raven stared up at him. "What?"

"Stankball." He muttered. "Take a shower."

A soft blush painted itself across her cheeks as Raven drew the hood of her cloak over her head. "Right. Goodnight."

Robin was already at the end of the hall, but he chuckled. "Sleep well, Raven."


End file.
